Sneaky fees; Am I crazy?

Sneaky fees; Am I crazy? 

When I was a child growing up just outside New York City during the 1970s, I learned to be afraid of getting mugged.  But this is not that.  The criminals I’m talking about don’t bop anyone over the head and steal hundreds of dollars.  These criminals slowly take $5, $10, and $20 from me, often with a smile. They pop a surcharge onto my monthly phone bill. They pad my TV bill with services I didn’t ask for.  They drain my bank account — drip, drip, drip — when I’m not watching.  These hidden fees keep me up late at night like the sound of a leaky faucet. I feel like I have to watch everything all the time, because it’s so easy to miss some statement on some form with some asterisk that means the company can take even more money from me. And when that happens, I suffer from what I call small print rage.        

Am I crazy? Or am I just paying attention? One thing I know for sure: I’m not alone.

I’m not a therapist, or a sociologist, but I feel on firm ground saying that small print rage is a close second only to road rage as a source of angst in America today.